Libya’s Prime Minister Abdel-Hamid Dbaiba has issued a decision appointing the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Oil and Gas, Khalifa Abdul Sadiq, to oversee the ministry’s duties following the suspension of Minister Mohamed Aoun.
Dbaiba’s decision referenced a decree by the head of the Administrative Control Authority, Abdullah Qadrbouh, numbered 347 for the year 2024, regarding the suspension of Oil and Gas Minister Mohamed Aoun from work.
On Monday, the head of the Administrative Control Authority issued a decision to suspend Aoun from work for reasons and requirements related to the investigation, based on a memorandum from the Director of the General Investigation Department and the course of the investigation into the events of case number 178, which revealed legal violations.
Qadrbouh stated to Bloomberg that some of the violations committed by Aoun “led to the relinquishment of the rights of the Libyan state, circumvention of the law, and waste of public funds.”
He further added that Aoun, in his capacity as head of the committee negotiating with foreign oil companies whose concession contracts had expired, renewed these agreements until 2032 without presenting them to the legislative authority for the approval of a law specifying and amending the shares.
Qadrbouh pointed out that other violations included Aoun informing the head of the National Oil Corporation in May 2021 that the Cabinet had approved the exchange of certain quantities of crude oil with refining companies in exchange for fuel products.
However, no such correspondence was found between the minister and the Cabinet.
